Kyla Lee

One of the biggest questions that defence lawyers have about marijuana legalization has to do with marijuana amnesty and sentencing. Individuals who possess marijuana for personal use are still being charged in Canada. Their charges are still going to court.
Despite the fact that the Government has announced their intention to legalize marijuana, people are still leaving court with criminal records for marijuana offences, and some are receiving jail sentences.

​Frankly, I find this practice appalling.

In the past, I have written several blog posts about delays in rendering decisions in Immediate Roadside Prohibition review cases. My complaints have been reasonable: drivers are not receiving their Immediate Roadside Prohibition review decisions in a timely manner, and are left in the dark about why the delay is occurring. 

From a lawyer’s perspective, this is frustrating for two reasons. First, I feel that I am doing a disservice to my clients as I am not able to provide them with information they need in their cases. I cannot tell them why there is no decision, or what this means, or whether the extension they’ve been given will be the last extension or the first in a series. Second, it’s frustrating to know that the law requires transparency in decision-making but that drivers who are facing this review process do not receive that. 

I’ve frequently argued that there’s no scientific correlation between blood THC concentration and a person’s ability to drive without being impaired. Often, opponents will respond with a bevy of medical articles suggesting the complete opposite, while supporters will do their own research and respond in kind with contradictory literature.

It’s really a question of who is right. Who is believable. Why are studies contradictory? Since well before marijuana was widely legalized in the United States and certainly before Canada announced its intentions to legalize it, scientists the world over have been busy at work. They were trying to determine, what, if any, correlation having marijuana in the system had to traffic incidents, regardless of whether these incidents caused injury or death.

​As a Métis person I struggle with the recent decisions in the killings of Colten Boushie and Tina Fontaine. I struggle because I know the history of this country, and how the murder or killing of young Indigenous people is not new, and is not going away. I know the history of the apathy of police to the investigation of crimes against Indigenous people, and I understand the systemic factors that impact the investigation, prosecution, and treatment of Indigenous people in the justice system, whether as victims or as accused individuals.

​But I struggle harder with all of this because I am also a criminal defence lawyer. And by virtue of that privilege, I have a particular insight into the frailties of the justice system, as well as the importance of concepts like reasonable doubt and the burden of proof on the Crown. I also know that unless you are sitting in the courtroom through every day of a trial, it’s unlikely that you can form a good picture of the case.

​Yesterday, I read a very disappointing article that summarized an interview with BC MLA Mike Morris about the NDP Government’s commitment to a $50 Million dollar investment in preserving Indigenous languages in British Columbia.

 

As a Metis person, I could not be happier with this commitment. The vast majority of Indigenous languages are endangered. When I was completing my undergraduate degree, I had the privilege of studying the Musqueam language, which sadly lost its last fluent speaker a few years before I took the course. These languages are only preserved as a result of the hard work of scholars and communities, and having provincial funding to make that happen is so refreshing and inspiring.